Review: Wildefire by Karsten Knight

Source: Received an ARC from Simon and Schuster Canada for an honest review.

Publisher: Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers

Release Date: July 26, 2011
Number of Pages: 393 (Hardcover)

(Goodreads Link.)

Blurb from Goodreads:

Every flame begins with a spark.

Ashline Wilde is having a rough sophomore year. She’s struggling to find her place as the only Polynesian girl in school, her boyfriend just cheated on her, and now her runaway sister, Eve, has decided to barge back into her life. When Eve’s violent behavior escalates and she does the unthinkable, Ash transfers to a remote private school nestled in California’s redwoods, hoping to put the tragedy behind her. But her fresh start at Blackwood Academy doesn’t go as planned. Just as Ash is beginning to enjoy the perks of her new school—being captain of the tennis team, a steamy romance with a hot, local park ranger—Ash discovers that a group of gods and goddesses have mysteriously enrolled at Blackwood…and she’s one of them. To make matters worse, Eve has resurfaced to haunt Ash, and she’s got some strange abilities of her own. With a war between the gods looming over campus, Ash must master the new fire smoldering within before she clashes with her sister one more time… And when warm and cold fronts collide, there’s guaranteed to be a storm.

---

Wildefire pretty much had everything I love in a book going for it, and I definitely loved it! It had a sassy and strong heroine, who wasn't perfect, which is nice. I'm not going to lie, it can get annoying when a character is perfect...or a tad Mary Sue-ish. I can definitely say that Ashline was not a Mary Sue, at all. She was super awesome, that's what she was. :D Along with Ashline, Wildefire had hot guys, mythology, and an amazing story line. This book kept me on my toes, and I loved the back-story. One of the things that always keeps me hooked with a book is a great history, and Wildefire definitely has that.

The characters were full of life and vibrant, and I wouldn't have been surprised if they'd managed to just walk right off the page. I loved getting to know them, and learning their secrets! Karsten Knight did a fantastic job with his characters, and with Ashline. He gave her such a unique voice. She's defintiely one of those heroines that stick out in your mind, although for some people it might not be in a good way. She's the kind of girl that you either admire and wanna hang out with, or you are immensely annoyed by. As you can tell by this review so far, I'm from the former category. I really liked Ashline, and to me, she was fantastic! A bit much at times, but her confidence definitely made her someone that I would love to get to know. She was so spunky, and I think she'd be really fun to meet. Now the guys...all of them were pretty dang awesome. Ashline's love interest, Colt, was definitely my favourite! I absolutely loved him! He was clever, and pretty adorable...although I did wonder why a college guy would want to date someone in high school...not going to lie, that's always something that's a bit skeevy in my opinion. I guess he wasn't way older, just a like 2 or 3 years, but still. If you like them that much, just wait a few years. :P

The whole mythology concept behind Wildefire is genius, and so fascinating! I absolutely loved that Karsten included a mixture of mythology from different cultures and races, and that it comes from all over the place, rather than one specific spot. Also, I just have to mention the title! The title is awesome! Ashline's last name is 'Wilde' and there is a certain amount of 'Fire' in this book. You might be able to guess how the fire comes into play, but I'll let you find out about it on your own. Anyways, so you put Wilde and Fire together and WHAM! you get the title. I'm probably the only one who's this excited about the book's title, but that's okay, I don't mind being the only one. I just thought I'd mention it to see if anyone else thought it was an awesome book title, too! :D

The storyline itself was great. It definitely left a lot of things open for the following books though, so I wasn't shocked to learn that it's the first in a series...although I honestly have no clue how long the series is going to be. The cliffhanger for this book was intense, but I wasn't too surprised. I'd kind of expected it all along...what you want to know what it is?? Sorry, my lips are sealed! You're just going to have to read Wildefire for yourself and find out about the ending for yourself! :P

I thought that Wildefire was a fantastic debut by Karsten Knight, and I definitely encourage you to give it a shot! It was an amazing story with very vivid characters and a remarkable history behind it...plus the title is awesome! :D

Will you be reading Wildefire when it comes out on July 26?
And if you've already read it, what did you think?

Happy Reading!!!

♪♫ Ambur